Kilmarnock have lost their appeal against Manuel Pascali's red card in the defeat to St Johnstone.
The Italian was sent off early in Killie's 2-1 Clydesdale Bank Premier League loss on Saturday for a fifth-minute challenge on Nigel Hasselbaink, who went off injured on the half-hour mark.
Kilmarnock manager Kenny Shiels was sent to the stand by referee Stevie O'Reilly after disputing the decision and the club believed they had a good chance of winning the appeal. But a fast-track tribunal convened by the Scottish Football Association rejected the club's position and Pascali will serve an immediate two-match ban for serious foul play.
The Rugby Park captain will miss Saturday's William Hill Scottish Cup fourth-round clash against Queen of the South and the visit of SPL leaders Celtic the following weekend.
The defender vented his frustration over the verdict on his Twitter account, writing: "Appeal rejected #ragin"
Speaking hours before the hearing, Shiels was adamant the sending-off was the wrong decision.
"I think harsh is the biggest understatement of the season," said Shiels when asked about the red card today.
"For people to say it was a two-footed tackle is unbelievable when he leads with the left foot, which was on the safe side of the opponent and his right leg, the near-side leg, is bent.
"It's incredible how the referee arrived at that decision, absolutely incredible."
The Kilmarnock manager's anger was further fuelled by decisions made by Willie Collum during Celtic's 4-0 win over Hearts on Wednesday. Shiels, who faces an SFA hearing over his dismissal, said: "I watched a tackle by (Victor) Wanyama last night, which was 100 times worse and he gets a yellow card. Scott Brown - the same."
